Preview

OVERVIEW

As a class, students create a basic plot diagram of a book they have read. They discuss the use of symbols to represent major events, and assign a positive or negative rating to each plot event they listed. The teacher then turns their ideas into a graphical map of the story to introduce the concept to the class.

In the next session, students discuss an example graphic map from The Watsons Go To Birmingham—1963, created from Kenny's point of view, and use a rubric to score it. Students then work in small groups, using an online tool to create a graphic map following another character in the book. Finally, students work independently to create a graphic map for another book they have read.

FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE

Story maps represent the basic structure of a narrative text, and act as templates that graphically represent plot elements. Most story maps document the basic elements of fiction: setting, characters, initiating event, conflict/goal, resolution, and theme. However, Margaret M. Foley in her article, "The (Un)Making of a Reader" asserts that we need to ask more from our students when they respond to literature. Foley states, "What is lost in our rush to have everyone comprehend in the same way is the reader's interests, feelings, and ideas" (510).

This lesson plan takes comprehension a step further by asking students to retell the story graphically, based on their own interpretation of the text. By focusing on a particular change through graphical maps, students gain a deeper understanding of a text. In such projects, students think about the events, characters, and themes; assign a value to them and think about how the elements of the story are all interconnected. This idea of comprehension helps students to read and respond in a deeper fashion.

Standards

NCTE/IRA NATIONAL STANDARDS FOR THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

Students read a wide range of print and nonprint texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary works.

Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound–letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).

STUDENT INTERACTIVES

The Plot Diagram is an organizational tool focusing on a pyramid or triangular shape, which is used to map the events in a story. This mapping of plot structure allows readers and writers to visualize the key features of stories.

The Graphic Map assists teachers and students in reading and writing activities by charting the high and low points related to a particular item or group of items, such as events during a day or chapters in a book.

In the box labeled Scene, record the page number of the section you will be documenting.

The Topic box is for a title of the scene.

There is an additional box to add a description of the event.

The final step is to choose a picture to represent the event.

When students have completed and printed their graphic maps, allow time for them to share with the rest of the class.

This sharing may open up discussions about the themes found in this book: racism, discrimination, differences in the North vs. the South, the decade and the happenings then, and so forth. The 1960s entry from Wikipedia and an NPR article about the 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing can provide useful background information to help facilitate this discussion.

Session Three

Begin this session by discussing the graphic maps from the previous class session. Talk about what went well, any difficulties encountered, and any problems with technology.

Groups may also want to assess their group graphic map using the rubric to see what they need to improve before they make their own individual graphic map.

Once students have had practice making a map of a character, explain that they will create a map on their own, using another text read in class, as part of a literature group, or listened to as a read aloud.

Allow time during the session for students to work on their maps independently. If desired, students might work in their journals for homework and then move to computers during an additional class session.

EXTENSIONS

Compare graphic maps of several characters from the same book to see how their lives intersect. Ask students to look for places where the characters are at different or similar points emotionally.

Choose a character who appears in a series of books. Graph how that character changes or stays the same throughout the different stories. For a more concrete example, view the lesson plan Mapping a Character Across a Series.

This activity can also be completed using a story that the student has written. The student would be able to visually see how the plot and characters work together in their writing.

Ask students to create graphic maps for other aspects of the novels—such as the themes (e.g., freedom, civil rights, or maturity). Maps for themes can then be compared to the maps for the individual characters to see how the similarities and differences inform the readers' understanding of the novel.

Have students check out the homepage of Christopher Paul Curtis, the author of The Watson's Go To Birmingham—1963, which includes information about other texts written by the author.

STUDENT ASSESSMENT/REFLECTIONS

In addition to observing students as they read and discuss the development of the characters in the novel, collect the artifacts from the lesson (Graphic Map printouts, any notes they have taken, scored rubrics, and so forth) to examine students’ understanding of character and character development.

Another form of assessment is to listen to the students as they work in their cooperative groups. Listen for specific details that indicate engagement with the reading. Ideally, these discussions will focus on the particular character and how that character interacts with others. Stronger readers will look more deeply and analytically at the character to hypothesize about motivations and implications for actions and thoughts while reading, and they will draw conclusions about how the character’s actions and changes affect the overall story and its themes. Pay attention to strong details and critical thinking rather than accuracy of predictions as you explore the notes—guessing the wrong outcome of events is an acceptable response as long as the hypothesis is tied to details in the story that support the conclusion.

Review Graphic Map printouts for accuracy and the understanding of the characters. For a more specific assessment, take notes and complete the rubric.

Related Resources

STUDENT INTERACTIVES

The Plot Diagram is an organizational tool focusing on a pyramid or triangular shape, which is used to map the events in a story. This mapping of plot structure allows readers and writers to visualize the key features of stories.

PROFESSIONAL LIBRARY

Through looking critically at the underpinnings of "story mapping, a teacher uncovers a contradiction between the author's definition of reading as a constructive process and the reductionist nature of story mapping, which she shows inhibits students' potential to explore a diverse range of personal responses by promoting comprehension over response, uniformity over diversity, and control over freedom.